Do Not Answer HimFood for Thought
An all-creatures.org Guide to Kingdom Living

…they held their peace and answered him not a word; for the
king’s commandment was, “Do not answer him” (Is. 36:21).

One of the most difficult things for me to do is to keep my mouth shut (and
I’m not just referring to overeating, though that may also be true on occasion).
I’m a communicator, an exhorter, an encourager and a teacher—and sometimes I
just like to hear myself talk.

This self-absorption with expressing our own thoughts, opinions, and feelings
is universal, whether or not you’re a communicator by gifting and calling, and
I’ve spent enough time around people to know that I’m not the only one who
suffers from “foot-in-mouth” disease. The Apostle Peter was famous for it, and
there are countless other examples in the Scriptures that show how people got
themselves into trouble by speaking first, thinking later. Mario Murillo
describes people like that as those who “gargle with gun powder and then go
around, shooting off their mouths.”

The Bible is full of admonitions to be still, be quiet, listen, hear, hold
your tongue, and control your speech. Is there anything more difficult? The Book
of James is replete with teaching on this very topic, which is why I find myself
having to read and reread it so often.

Years ago I served on a church staff, and one of my primary duties was that
of biblical counseling. How naïve I was when I first began to serve in that
position! Thankfully I at least had the understanding and humility to seek God
before I started, but as I prayed for God to show me what to say to these people
who came to me for help, I was stunned to discover that instead of telling me
what to say, the Lord told me instead, “Learn to listen.”

Listening is an art, and it takes time and practice to learn it. We live in a
world of noise—some imposed on us by others, but much self-inflicted. It isn’t
enough that we have radios and televisions and CD players blasting us at home;
we take those same noisemakers with us in our cars, to the beach, to the park,
to the mountains. It’s as if we’re afraid to “Be still and know that [God] is
God” (Ps. 46:10). We are a people who claim to want peace and wisdom, and yet we
refuse to do what is necessary to obtain them: to be still, to be quiet, and to
listen.

God had to teach me to listen—not just to those who came to me for counsel
(what they were saying, as well as what they were NOT saying), but also to the
Holy Spirit, as He whispered words of wisdom to my heart. Without first
listening for God’s wisdom and direction, I would have nothing to offer anyone
except my opinions and thoughts, worldly wisdom that profits nothing.

And then there are the times we want to defend ourselves, to argue our
position and prove ourselves right. Even as someone is expressing himself to us,
we are forming our answers in our mind, ready to fire back a response the moment
the other person takes a breath. The problem with that is that while we’re
formulating our brilliant comeback, we can’t hear what God is speaking to us,
and we end up wondering why our words only complicated the problem, rather than
clarifying and resolving the situation.

Sometimes God tells us to loudly and boldly proclaim His Word; as writers and
communicators, and as believers and followers of Christ, we must do so. At other
times He tells us to be still and listen. I personally find those listening
times to be much more challenging and difficult to obey. But obey we must. When
the King commands, “Do not answer him,” then may we put our hands over our
mouths, open our ears and heart…and listen to the One who hung the Universe by
His Word. Only then will we have anything worth saying to others.

The
purpose of this series is to encourage people to live as loving, compassionate,
and peacemaking children of God: Jesus tells us to pray, "Thy kingdom come, thy
will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." (Matthew 6:10) God tells us through
Micah (6:8), "He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord
require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your
God." And we know from Revelation 21:4 that there will be no more mourning, or
crying, or pain, or death. Thus, Christian living requires us to set the
standards of these conditions here on earth for our fellow human beings, and for
the other animals, as a witness to the rest of the world. To do otherwise is not
Christian.

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